360, Wii, or PS3

[Kristian Calhoun]

How's this Sony?...The Wii officially uses bluetooth!

[i_am_Doug]

Originally Posted by calhounian

How's this Sony?...The Wii officially uses bluetooth!

Wow, that will be like a kick in the crotch... But that's cool, id bet that it will help sales alot! Hmm now im trying to pick a 360 or the revo.

Wii console with a single-chip, 54g Wi-Fi solution,

54 gigs?

[Brian Lesser]

Originally Posted by i_am_Doug

54 gigs?

802.11g

It's one of the versions of Wireless internet (the others being 802.11a and 802.11b)

Anyways, I'm definately getting the Wii. So much to look forward to, especially with the announcement of Twilight Princess for the system

[lukevanoort]

Originally Posted by Brian Lesser

802.11g

It's one of the versions of Wireless internet (the others being 802.11a and 802.11b)

Anyways, I'm definately getting the Wii. So much to look forward to, especially with the announcement of Twilight Princess for the system

You mean wireless intranet, right?

[Brian Lesser]

Originally Posted by lukevanoort

You mean wireless intranet, right?

I guess so? *shrugs*

*looks up the difference*

Oh

[AmayaSaria]

Welll I really want a PS3--but the price is so high! o.0

I'm more excited for the Wii because it's finally something different! A new control, and a new way of gameplay. Its going to be fun! Nintendo is really good with new creative games.

I'm not a big fan of the Xbox/360 so it doesn't make a difference to me!

[Lil' Lavery]

WARNING, LONG POST INCOMING!!

Here's my take on the next generation of consoles.

First off, if you think about it, what's inside really doesn't make THAT big of a difference on how the console will be to play and how much sales it gets, it's really how many good exclusive games there are. But, what's inside does help to determine that.

XBox 360:
Comparable power to the PS3 shouldn't lead to a massive advantage either way amognst consoles sales or game developers, but other factors might. A year early means a greater library by the release of the PS3 and Wii, and it also has a lowER (still not low) price than the PS3. Even with the year early launch, it's collection of 360 exclusive games is still weak aside of Oblivion, and Ghost Recon, as many of the new games were also released for the original XBox. And aside of a fwe big title releases such as Gears of War, Too Human, and Halo 3, it's future isn't exactly bursting at the seams with titles. Questions as to the release dates of Too Human and Halo 3 are also floating, and gamers may have to wait quite some time to be able to play them. Can Master Chief hold a system aloft again?
The 360 also flopped in Japan, and many japanese developers will not be contributing to the next generation of games on this American system. The trend has been uphill though. In 2005, 360 lacked basically any good exclusive games, but in the early months of 2006 we have seen a few outstanding games emerge. The online play also trumps Sony's and Nintendo's current online packages about 100 fold. The downfall is most of the "arcade games" can be found (or games similar to them) on the internet from your desktop computer.
The 360 still has a decent shot at holding the "mainstream gamer" though. I have often found that the hardcore FPS-gamer is not as enthralled by Halo as the mainstream gamer is. My hardcore FPSer friend tend to play Unreal Tournament, Doom, and Goldeneye just as much as Halo, and certainly don't buy an XBox for Halo if they don't own one. Oblivion is a solid fix for the mainstream gamer RPG urges. The 360 lacks a wide variety of RPG's for the hardcore RPG addict though. Because RPG's have much much less replay value, a hardcore RPG gamer cannot live off of the same couple games like other genres-addicts of gamers can. The 360 offers enough sports, action, and online titles to keep the mainstreamer happy as well.

Wii:
The obvious feature is the controller. But will this prove to be just another Nintendo gimmick? (Virtual Boy anyone?) Plus, how long before the other consoles steal this feature, and have it used in a large proportion of their games. The issue with that is that the second half of the statement, though. The Wii will obviously have this feature used in most, if not all, of it's games. Beyond that, the Wii has a couple other "revolutionary" (sorry, couldn't resist the pun) features. The controllers also have built in speakers, and console is always on, and communicating with the internet.
You may ask, "Why?". The speaker in the controller may actually be quite useful. Imagine playing Mario Party and having your controller ring every time it's your turn (although that also could get quite annoying) or your controller making individual firing noises in a FPS for each player instead of them all coming through the same TV speakers. As for the internet connection, people could visit your Animal Crossing city while you sleep and ummm.....umm.......leave you things? I really don't know how little or how much this feature can do, and whether it's actually going to be worth anything. I suppose it could automatically download software updates during the night when it is less likely to disrupt your playtime as well.
The Wii is also the ultimate in backwards compatibility. XBox Live's arcade games and Sony's backwards compatability are put to shame. You can download a plethora of titles from any Nintendo system, Sega Genesis, or TurboGrafx-16 (w00t! I've been waiting forever for some sick TurboGrafx games! ), for reported prices ranging from $5-15. Although, like any backwards compatibility, it is best if you do not already own the games in some form (many top selling NES, SNES, and Genesis games have been reproduced for other systems, like Gameboy, or can be found via online emulators). The new game titles so far have been the same old Nintendo. How they are adapted to the new control style is what makes it interesting and what might make Twiglight Princess worth purchasing for the Wii instead of the Gamecube.
The new controller style is attracting alot of developers who want to take a crack at that style of gaming. But the Wii is also the weakest of the three systems in terms of processing power. There is still a strong concern that the 3rd party support will suck as much on the Wii as it did on the Gamecube, and the online gameplay will be little to none. It also cannot support HD graphics, the sharpest resolution is 480p, the same as the Gamecube. The Wii might also lose some games that both the 360 and the PS3 will carry do to the lower power and interesting control style, especially from American developers. Plus, it's named Wii....
....but I'm sure with all the money you saved you can buy some sharpies and write Revolution over all the "Wiis"

PS3:
The cell processed monster looms on the horizon, boasting the most power of the 3 systems (but the 360 is no featherweight). The 7 standard wireless (it appears only 4 will be for contollers though) ports are also impressive, along with the amount of USB 2.0 ports, bluetooth (which the Wii also now has), Blu-Ray, etc etc etc. The PS3 clearly wins the hardware race of the next gen consoles. But with that, also comes the massive price tag, $500 for the smaller of the two bundles.
The very immediate releases seem a bit lacking, but at least it has backwards compatibility (while that doesn't do any good for PS2 owners, a new player to the brand can purchase and play older games while they wait for the next gen). The line-up is better than the 360's launch line-up though. The first year should see, Killzone 2, Unreal Tournament 2007, and Coded Arms: Assault (which is supposed to be much better than it's PSP counter-part, although no guarantees) give it a strong FPS line-up. Virtua Fighter and Tekken look to provide a fighting game solution, while Devil May Cry 4, Metal Gear Solid 4, and Mercanies headline three different action approaches. If Fatal Inertia's physics engine and weapons are as amazing as promised, it could revolutionize the sci-fi racing game industry (damage will actually alter your vehicle's performance, etc). Sony has long dominated the RPG market, though the early releases for the PS3 seem to lack in this department. The Final Fantasy VII remake should come out sometime in 2007, but you can play the original on PS1 and 2. Final Fantasy XII is being launched on the PS2. Action game phenominal God of War's sequel will also be on the PS2.
Sony has promised a new, much more expansive online system, similar to XBox Live. The difference? No fees. That could help to reduce the strain on your wallet after forking over the cash to buy the system.
The hardware also has one other major problem. It's simultaneous worldwide launch may lead to PS3 shortages worse than the 360's shortages, both here and in Japan. The 360's year-long head start will make it easier to find this holiday season than the PS3. I wouldn't worry about the lack of rumble in the controllers though. Does anyone doubt that a 3rd party won't produce a rumble-equipped controller rapidly?



My winner, the PS3. It's massive hardware advantage and Blu-ray capabilities make it the machine built for the long haul. The PS3 could do for the Blu-ray what the PS2 did for the DVD, and having a system without that ability may cost you alot of flexibility. It's price tag may be steep, but remind yourself that it isn't essential to buy a system near the launch, or even during the holiday season. Wait 6-9 months for the price to drop, and buy a system for cheaper, and with a greater library of released games.
The Wii seems a bit "hit or miss" for me to invest even the lesser extent of money in, especially if it doesn't draw 3rd party support like the Gamecube failed to do.
The 360 seems too much like a super-XBox to be worth the cash to me. A majority of it's big games are sequals to Xbox games, and it doesn't really offer much new features.